Bring Him Home
by danystorm
Summary: Bounty hunter Skye Esthiem hasn't seen her family in four years. Deciding to reconcile during a vacation in Bodhum, the family gets caught in the Purge. Now with her mother dead and her brother made a l'Cie, Skye becomes entangled in the plot to save Cocoon in hopes to help Hope complete his Focus. Easier said then done.
1. Prologue

**_Disclaimer: This is my first fanfic involving Final Fantasy. The dialogue won't be word for word with the game, cuz let's face it that's no fun. Final Fantasy belongs to Square Enix, I own nothing except my OC. This is an AU fic where Hope has an older sister. Please Fav/Review if you like the story, I always appreciate feedback. With that I hope you enjoy._**

**_Rated M for mature themes, violence, language, possible gore, lemon and yuri in later chapters. _**

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**Prologue**

**~The Train to Hell~**

Skye Esthiem knew boarding that train would mean certain death. She was sure Mom knew too, maybe even Hope. The Purge meant exile to Pulse, hell on earth, all because they came in contact with a Pulse l'Cie, an enemy of Cocoon. Skye wasn't even supposed to be in Bodhum, but Mom wanted them all to be together on their vacation. Lucky for Dad he got out of it, or he'd be purged too. Some get together, the one time she decides that maybe, just maybe reconciling with her mother would be the best thing for her, and this happens.

They never even saw the l'Cie, chances are only a small percentage of the city actually came into contact with it and yet here they all were, being rounded up like animals to the slaughter. No wonder she'd become such a cynic, people were so stupid, they believed anything the higher ups told them. They say l'Cie are dangerous, contagious monsters and all of Cocoon goes into a panic. Not that Skye was any different, she too feared the l'Cie and the things they could do but she didn't buy that one l'Cie managed to contaminate a whole city.

As a soldier moved down the train cars, examining all the 'infected' wearing white cloaks with glowing blue diamonds on the hood, Skye glowered at him. She was of course filled with resentment, after all, she was being sent to die for no good reason but keeping Cocoon's populous at ease that they wouldn't catch the so-called disease. The soldier hoisted his gun, only a bit, only enough to show that he wouldn't put up with her attitude if she decided to mouth him off. What better way to keep someone in line than to point a gun to their face? She got the message quickly enough and turned her gaze to the side, looking down at the hooded figure of her younger brother.

Hope. It'd been a while since she'd seen him, maybe four years before Mom made contact with her. She actually felt kinda shitty for up and leaving him all by himself, they used to be close once before, but now they could barely share a sentence without it getting awkward. Maybe Hope still resented her for leaving, for saying all the things she said to Mom, for blocking her family out of her life for four years because of a stupid disagreement.

_Now's not the time to be reminiscing about that. _


	2. Chapter 1

**Chapter One**

**~ Meeting Snow ~**

When they arrived to Hanging Edge, all chaos seemed to break loose. Skye ended up with Hope and Mom, luckily safely away from the gunfire. That's when she first met Snow and the rest of the Resistance.

"Is everyone okay?" the blonde asked, holding a gun over his shoulder so carelessly. He was a tall, very muscular man, and dare she say good looking. Blue eyes peeked out from his bangs and a black bandana fit snuggly to his head. He had a bit of stubble on his chin and a cocky half smile that said he could take on the world. He was overconfident, she knew the type, she used to be the type, seeing this guy made her cringe he reminded her so much of her old self.

When the captured civilians expressed that they wanted to fight, Snow raised a brow. "Alright then, we've only got a few guns left, so who wants em?" he questioned, scanning the brave, angered and some scared faces.

"I can take one."

Snow's gaze focused on the young woman who spoke, her resemblance to the lady next to her was uncanny, they must have been related. Her long paper straight silver hair was pulled into a high side ponytail on the right side of her face. Her seafoam blue-green eyes leered at him as she took a gun from the pile. She wasn't dressed like an everyday civilian, wearing a green long sleeve shirt with her shoulders bare, an orange and yellow high collared open vest and an orange-yellow corset looking thing around her stomach. Two arm belts were wrapped just below her shoulder and below her elbow on each arm and orange, fingerless gloves covered her hands. Her belt had a gun holder on the back of it, giving Snow the safe assumption that she normally would have carried one, maybe PSICOM took it from her when she boarded the train. Although, now wasn't the time to play guessing games on who she was, Serah was waiting for her hero.

As other civilians took their weapons, the other woman in a cream knit sweater that looked almost identical to the young girl with the massive attitude, took hold of one of the last guns in the pile.

"You sure?" Snow asked, looking to the kid that hesitated to let her go. He never would've taken a middle-aged mom to know how to handle a gun.

"Yeah, moms are tough."

Snow nodded, picking up the last of their artillery. "Alright, last one, who wants it?" he questioned, holding the weapon out to the woman's son, who backed away, mumbling and shaking his head. Snow could understand, this was terrifying, especially for a kid, although when a young girl, got to her knees and stretched her hands out to take the gun, he was taken off guard. "Uhm…okay?" he awkwardly glaced from side to side and passed the weapon to the young girl who motioned it like she was shooting, saying, "bang bang."

Kids these days…

"Alright then! Let's go!" he announced, leading NORA and the Resistance to fight Sanctum.

_Mom, what the hell are you thinking? What about Hope? He needs you, more than anything! Do you even know how to use a gun?_

Skye's thoughts were practically poisoning her mind, threatening to break her concentration as she took out soldiers, one by one. She knew their weak points; it was part of her job to know that much, killing these guys off had become child's play. That didn't mean she could just let her guard down worrying about Mom and Hope, this was the one time she had to shut them out but the one time she couldn't. Hope was still only a kid, and he was close with Mom, very close. If anything happened to her, and Skye made responsible for her brother, she wasn't sure if she could handle something like that. How could she? She knew nothing about kids! Let alone her estranged brother. It was sad really; she didn't know a thing about her own family anymore.

_Dammit! I don't have time to be thinking like this! I'll only end up getting myself killed!_

Shoot. Kill. Engage new target. Those were the only things she could allow herself to focus on, it was the only way she'd stay alive. She was used to shooting from a distance, taking her targets out assassination style, where she was safely out of the line of fire. But there was no escaping the line of fire on this battleground, if there weren't soldiers then there were Peace Keepers and many forms of aircraft that had to be taken out.

Shoot. Kill. Engage new target.

Gunfire rang like music to her ears, if she wanted to she could almost sing along to it, as if there was any kind of rhythm there. Shoot. Kill. Engage new target. Skye moved swiftly, weaving through gunfire like a cat, almost like a dance. Picking up a dead solider, she held it in front of her, shielding herself from the oncoming ammunition while shooting her attackers. There was just no end to this, they just kept flooding in, like PSICOM had unlimited soldiers to dispatch. _Fuck!_

_Click! Click! Click!_ Skye cursed, hearing the sound of an empty cartridge. She was out of ammo, already! She thought these damn guns were supposed be limitless or something. Apparently not. "Ugh! C'mon!" she hissed, hitting the ground and rolling behind a piece of the train tracks that were blown up next to the blond guy with the hero act.

"Out of ammo?" he asked, shooting a soldier behind her.

"There's a gun over there, but I can't reach it without getting shot!" she answered, using this moment to catch her breath.

"Eh? Well leave it to me," he grinned darting out towards the line of fire.

"Wait! You idiot! You'll be ki—" she cut herself off as he continued to run for it, knowing he wouldn't hear her, even if he decided to listen. "Men!" she rolled her eyes and lunged out, a stray bullet grazing her arm, just enough to break and burn the skin. "Shit!" she cringed, sliding behind another chunk of debris, holding the searing wound. Skye continued to put pressure on her injury to stop the bleeding, not that it was anything fatal, and it'd just be an inconvenience. Searching the area, she spotted the man's beige trench coat as he slid next to her. "You're hit! Why didn't you stay where it was safe?"

"You think I'm stupid? You might have lucked out getting there but I wasn't gonna chance it that you'd get back alive," she winced, squeezing her arm as if that'd stop the pain.

"Well aren't you a cynic! Don't you know? The heroes never die!"

"Really, well I've met plenty of 'heroes.' And I can take them out pretty easily with a headshot. Save the bullshit will you? And give me the damn gun!"

One soldier circled around the debris, before Skye could grab the weapon, and Snow didn't seem to react fast enough. She grabbed him by his shirt and pulled him to the ground, but he'd still get hit, even if she got him out of a fatal shot.

_Bang!_

The soldier fell dead, and Mom appeared around the corner, a thin wisp of smoke rising from the weapon. _Good on you mom…_

"Thanks," Snow nodded pulling Skye to her feet and looking to the older woman. "I really owe you one," he chuckled.

"Like I said, moms are tough."

That was the last thing Skye heard her mother say. She could see the grenade, but she couldn't do anything to stop it, she couldn't even warn Mom before the explosion hit. Lunging forward to stop Mom from falling, the bridge began to cave in, causing her to lose her footing and strike her head on the ground.

"No!" Snow cried, as the bridge began to collapse, sending countless to their deaths. As they slid downwards, Snow quickly grabbed the girl's hand, who in turn took her mom's. But he could tell, she was completely disoriented from that knock on the head. He was just grateful she didn't pass out. It was too much weight, but he had to save them! He had to save everyone! He was the hero! "Dammit! Hold on! You're gonna make it!" he assured, holding onto the women for dear life.

"Bring him home," the woman whispered, tears slowly trickling down her cheeks as she let go of her daughter's hand, falling into darkness.

"NO!"

Snow held onto that ledge, keeping his other hand securely on the girl's wrist. Bring him home. What did she mean? Who was she talking about? A small groan escaped the girl's lips, making Snow turn his attention back to her. "Hey! Hey! Don't you dare let go you hear me?!" he barked, feeling her weight go slack, she was losing consciousness and he was losing his grip on the ledge. "C'mon! Stay with me!" he shouted, his fingers slipping from the rock, sending him plummeting down. Quickly pulling the girl onto his chest, he hit the ground, the wind knocked out of him, the impact was enough to make her bounce onto the ground like a lifeless doll. "Don't be dead…agh!"

And with that all went black.


	3. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

**~ Crash and Burn ~**

She could see everything happening, she was right there but she couldn't even hold on. _Mom…why did you let go? Why couldn't I? Why couldn't I save you? _As her vision slowly returned, she found Snow not far from her, also recuperating from the fall. How the hell did they survive that?

"You okay?" Snow asked, slowly sitting up, feeling a sharp pain well, everywhere. There was no telling how long they were out for, but he couldn't imagine long. PSICOM would have assured they were dead if they came across their bodies. "Hey, lady are you gonna be okay?"

_No…No I'm not gonna be okay…_

"I'm fine…" Skye answered, slowly climbing to her feet. "Thanks for saving me," she mumbled, feeling a lump in her throat and her eyes well with tears but she couldn't cry now. She couldn't let the image of Mom falling into nothingness replay in her mind. Part of her wanted to blame Snow, but it wouldn't be fair, he had to hold the weight of two people and if she had been completely in check, she wouldn't have been dead weight. It wasn't fair of her to blame Snow. "And it's Skye… nothing pisses me off more than people calling me 'lady.'"

"Okay…Skye, we have to regroup with the rest of NORA, can you walk?" Snow questioned striding forward with a bit of a limp in his step.

"Yeah, let's go."

He couldn't stop crying. It wasn't fair! He just let Mom die! And there was nothing Hope could do to change that. Mom was gone; Skye might have been gone too for all he knew. What was he supposed to do now? Talking to Vanille didn't help him any, he knew she was only trying to make things better, but nothing could make this better.

As Snow returned, Hope felt some relief seeing Skye walking somberly next to him, but he wasn't about to run and hug her. She didn't even look like she cared about what happened to Mom, she had that same neutral expression on her face, like nothing even bothered her. What was the point of crying to her anyway? She just up and left home, she didn't give a damn about him or mom or anything. He was furious, but he said nothing. Nothing he said would change what happened right? When Snow started talking his hero nonsense, Hope could feel tears spill from his eyes. How could he call himself a hero? How could he smile like that as if nothing was wrong?

"You have to tell him," Vanille said with her hands on his shoulders as a way to encourage him.

"What's the point?" Hope choked back a sob, wiping the water from his eyes. He watched Snow fly off, with that same smile plastered on his face. It made him sick! Even if he wanted to tell him off, he couldn't anymore.

"Hey kid," Skye spoke standing in front of him and staring down at him like he was inferior to her. "Whose your friend?" she asked, diverting her attention to Vanille.

"I'm Vanille," the salmon haired girl smiled, stretching out a hand that Skye didn't take. What was she supposed to say now? Sorry I got mom killed? She was now responsible for a fourteen year old that probably hated her guts.

"Hey you," a dark skinned man with vibrant spiked orange hair announced, striding over to the trio.

"Talking to me?" Skye questioned, moving away from her brother and meeting the man halfway.

"Yeah you, you've got some skill, we could use your help getting these civilians to safety what'd you say?" he propositioned, crossing his arms over his broad chest.

Looking to Hope and Vanille and then back to the man Skye nodded, deciding to help everyone, it was a good excuse to avoid talking to Hope about mom. Once she got him back home to Dad then she could go back to her old life. There was no chance of reconciling with her family now, not after this.

"She doesn't even care!" Hope wiped his eyes again, watching his sister speak with Gadot and round up other civilians.

"You need to say something Hope," Vanille said pulling on the boy's arm. "So c'mon!"

Ripping his arm back and furrowing his brow, Hope stood his ground for a moment. "No! I'm not talking to her!" he shot. "Look I know you're trying to help but what's the point of saying anything to anybody? It doesn't change anything! Mom's still gone!"

Spotting the second air bike from a far, Vanille smiled and dragged Hope to the vehicle. If he wouldn't talk to his sister then he'd just have to talk to Snow. "You know how to fly this?" she asked tilting her head to the side.

"Yeah."

"Then let's go!" the young girl beamed pushing Hope into the seat and wrapping her arms around his waist. "That way…"

Dammit! I'm such a coward! I can't even talk to my own brother! Skye scolded herself, helping the man known as Gadot and the rest of their little group save all the poor civilians that got sucked into this mess. She never should have been so damn selfish, she never should have gone to Bodhum, maybe then mom would still be alive and Hope could be back home with her, while Skye was off doing what she was supposed to be doing: killing people for a profit.

The sound of the air bike starting up immediately caught her attention. Whipping around she saw Hope and Vanille about to take off in that thing.

"Hey! Get back here!" Gadot barked running towards them.

Skye followed, the panic on her face was evident. She wasn't about to mask her concern this time. "Hope! What the hell do you think you're doing?!" she hissed chasing after the bike before it became airborne. As the two took off, doing flips in the air and nearly crashing it, the gusts of wind knocked Gadot back, taking Skye to the ground with him.

"Son of a bitch!" she cursed as her brother and that girl flew off in the direction of the fal'Cie. "How do I get to the Vestige?" Skye demanded shoving Gadot off her and rising to her feet. "How can I get there?" she hissed again when Gadot didn't answer.

"There's no way for you to get to the fal'Cie on foot! Why the hell would you even try that it's a damn suicide mission!" the man shot back, taking Skye by her shoulders and giving her a shake as if that would knock some sense into her.

"Please I live for suicide missions! If Snow can make it there, if my fourteen year old brother plans to make it there, then you'd better be damned sure I'm not gonna stand around and see him die or become a l'Cie! Are there any other aircraft I can take into that thing?"  
"I told you there's no way you can get there!" Gadot snapped. "PSICOM will shoot you down before they let you steal one of their machines!"

"Well let those sons of bitches try!"

Darting in the direction of the fal'Cie, Skye did the only thing she could think of: leap onto a moving aircraft and with any luck take control of it without getting shot, stabbed, eaten by mechanical birds or otherwise impaled by other chunks of metal. Easier said then done. However, death-defying stunts were one of her many specialties so she'd just have to trust that she could pull it off and not die. She couldn't let mom down. She had to look after her brother, get him back to dad and then she'd be gone forever, out of their lives for good. It'd do them all a favour if she weren't around.

_Bring him home…Tch…easier said then done. It shouldn't have been you mom…_

Shaking her head as an air bike approached, Skye made a running start and leaped, making it into the seat but that didn't mean she was anywhere near off the hook. The bike swerved off the path as Skye wrapped her legs around the PSICOM pilot from behind, preventing him from going for a gun. Lunging forward she grabbed his head and twisted his neck, ending in a loud snap! "Piece of cake," she snickered, her victory short lived as the bike spiraled out of control. "SHIT!" she yelped, climbing over the soldier's body and grabbing the wheel, trying to steer the bike back on the right path. Other PSICOM aircraft soon closed in on her, after all seeing an out of control bike was practically a neon sign to shoot here. "Son of a bitch!"

Weaving the bike around in a desperate attempt to shake them, she made her prime focus to get closer to the fal'Cie. PSICOM seemed to avoid going near it, meaning she'd probably lose them once she got close enough to it. At least that was the hope, there was no telling if she could even shake them long enough before they shot her out of the air. "Fuck this is why I hate flying!" Skye cursed jerking the wheel, whipping herself to the side to avoid bullets. All the chaotic motion made her feel sick. The bike spun around, taking a hit in the back tire. "Not good!" she screamed, forcing the wheel in the opposite direction to try leveling the bike out but that wasn't happening. She was crashing. "Okay…this is where I get off," Skye quickly leaped from the aircraft aiming for the moving base containing two people, they'd be easy to take out if they were PSICOM but from the look of their attire they weren't soldiers. While she planned on scoring a perfect landing she kicked to the ground by a young rose haired woman, a woman with a stone cold face and angry blue eyes. Skye knew that face, or a face similar to it but now wasn't the time for that. As she hit the ground, Skye quickly pulled her gun, only to be greeted with a sword to her throat. "That's a bit harsh isn't it sweetheart?" Skye sneered hearing the click of another gun belonging to a dark skinned man with a bit more emotion on his features. "I don't know what the dress code for a lady PSICOM is but I can tell you now I'm not military and judging from the fact that you two haven't shot me yet I'm guessing you're not either," she tilted her head to the side feeling the blade graze against her throat.

"What the hell was that stunt you just tried to pull lady?" the man ordered pointing to the bike as it crashed.

"I had to get to the fal'Cie and flying isn't my strong suit," Skye rolled her eyes. "You gonna pull that sword away? I shoot faster than you slice, if I was a threat you'd be dead by now."

"Really? I doubt that." the woman narrowed her eyes but pulled her sword back regardless. Skye pulled her gun back and rose to her feet. "Just what do you want with the fal'Cie?" the woman continued.

"Long story, it's not exactly the fal'Cie I want to bother, I just have to get to it."

"Well you're in luck, the fal'Cie is where we're headed," the man informed as a Chocobo chick popped out from his afro.

"Great…more collateral," the woman muttered as the platform drew them closer to the fal'Cie. This wasn't what Lightning signed up for, first Sazh and now this? They'd only slow her down.


End file.
